| Big
Pocono Trail Ride - Camelback Mountain off Camelback Road
Tannersville, PA. 18372
One of the highest elevation rides in the Poconos. Absolutely wonderful
views of the Delaware Water Gap, and across NJ to the southern tip
of New York State. (Look for the obelisk at High Point Park to the
North East.) Get information, maps and supplies at "The Loft" on Camelback Road on your way up. Make it a two day trip and spend
the second day relaxing your sore muscles at Camelbeach
Water Park in the Kahuna Lagoon Wave Pool. The trails are
numerous, some isolated, single track and woods roads and an old
railroad bed. Take lots of water on this ride! Be aware of the wild
life - we've seen bear, foxes, an abundance of dear and on one occasion
a real wild Bobcat.
If you choose to ride in the Adjacent State Gamelands:
State Game Lands 38 contains 3,943 acres of forest adjacent to Big Pocono State Park and is undeveloped, with rocky, little-used roads and an abandoned railroad grade. A boulder field and kettle lakes are reminders of glacial history. The glacier gouged out depressions, which filled with melting ice. These lakes are fed by groundwater alone and, on a geologic scale, are temporary features. They will eventually fill with sediment and become swamp and then forest. Interesting features: Pennsylvania kettle lakes, boulder field. Surface: Rough woods road, abandoned railroad grade, power-line cut. Personally recommended by our PoconosBest.com
Staff. Who bikes here: All the Local and State Officials. More on Big Pocono Trails
Where You will Stay: "The Chateau"
Call 1-800-805-3559 for reservations
Our 2 day 2 night Mountain Biking In Big Pocono State Park $499 + Tax ($249.50 per person) for two people for 2 nights package includes:
> Overnight accommodations at The Chateau (a 3.5 to 4 Star hotel on the Mountain) for two. Breakfast is available for a charge in the onsite restaurant.
> Bike rental for 2 for One Day. 9 AM until 5 PM. (Use either day of your stay reserved in advance.)
> Dinner Voucher for one dinner (Value to $40.00) At Alaska Pete's Roadhouse Saloon and Restaurant - About a 18 minute drive of teh hotel.
> Map to Trail Entrance, Map of Trail, Guide to Big Pocono State Park.
> Gift Cooler with Water, Snacks and Fun Poconos items to take with you on your trip or to take home.
This package is for the novice to intermediate biker. A fun easy trip with some hills and single track up and down the same path with views of the river and mountains. Since you will be traveling through the State Park the entire trip, you'll not see any houses and very little evidence of civilization. The land along the trip is pretty much the way it was in the 1700s.
For bike rentals go to The Loft just 5 minutes from where the trail begins. Camelback Road Tannersville, PA 18372 Guided hikes in the area are also available.
You will stay at this Hotel "The Chateau Resort"
You may request an other more romantic Country Inn during the reservation process and most of the time we will be able to accommodate you. However final selection of the inn is based upon availability. It is possible that we may have to finalize your reservation at an inn other than your preference. Each inn has its unique ambienace and all are inviting, clean and friendly.
$499 + Tax ($249.50 per person) for two people for 2 nights
Call 1-800-805-3559 for reservations
Big Pocono State Park Bike Trails Map
Big Pocono State Game Lands 38 Biking Map
Biking: Bicycles are permitted on all hard surface roads shared by vehicles. Mountain biking is permitted on South Trail and North Trail Lower Loop. Bikes are prohibited on the connecting trails from the parking lots and on Indian and North trails.
The top of Camelback Mountain is a unique forest called a scrub oak shrubland. Wind-dwarfed gray birch, quaking aspen, red pine and scrub oak cover the mountaintop, with no tree over twenty feet tall. Lowbush blueberry, sweet fern and mountain laurel grow under the short trees. Down slope, the forest offers more shade with mixed hardwoods including oak, maple, and hickory trees.
Portions of South Trail are lined with blueberry and mountain laurel, which bloom in mid-June. On the north side of the mountain, North Trail Lower Loop Trail on the old railroad grade passes through a rock cut and offers hikers a glimpse of a hemlock and rhododendron glen, which is surprisingly cool on hot summer days. Rhododendron blooms in late July.
History:
Big Pocono State Park is on land which was owned by Henry S. Cattell near the turn of the 20th century. Mr. Cattell, being very fond of the view from the summit of Camelback Mountain, and knowing that many others shared his love for the area, constructed a stone cabin on the summit in 1908. The Cattell Cabin was left unlocked for many years to be used as a shelter by anyone who wished.
Since 1921, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry has maintained Big Pocono Fire Tower on the mountain for the purpose of detecting forest fires in the surrounding private and state forest lands. The tower is staffed only during the spring and fall seasons and has been dedicated by the National Fire Tower Association as a historical structure.
In 1928, 12 years after Mr. Cattell's death, the Pennsylvania Game Commission purchased the area. In 1950, a portion of the state land on the steep north slope of the mountain was leased to Big Pocono Skiing, Inc., for commercial ski development. Later named Camelback Ski Corporation, the facility has been developed into a major ski resort.
In 1953, a 1,306-acre portion of the state game lands, including the ski area lease, was acquired by the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters (now the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources) for the purpose of developing a state park at the mountain's summit.
In 1954, after the construction of restrooms, parking areas, picnic sites, fireplaces and a scenic drive around the summit, the area was opened to the public as Big Pocono State Park. The Cattell Cabin (pictured below) served for many years as a park office and nature museum |